Page 291 - Guildhall School Coverage Book 2020/21

26 July 2021

LEADERS ON (AND OFF) STAGE

Trudy Wright and Jane Booth

Trudy Wright and Jane Booth from Guildhall Coaching Associates introduce their new course, which
aims to support musicians in the non-musical aspects of their work, particularly principal players.

Orchestral principals are outstanding performers who have trained for decades to reach the exceptional
standards required to play and lead their sections in professional orchestras. They are masters of their
instruments. Orchestral life involves intense periods of back-to-back work, irregular schedules and sky-high
performance expectations with minimum rehearsal time, all of which is compounded by a blurring of the
lines between what constitutes work and play.

Jane Booth (for over 25 years a principal clarinettist in leading UK and European orchestras, and now
Leader of the Guildhall Coaching Associates at Guildhall School of Music & Drama), and Trudy Wright
(former Director and Head of Orchestral Tours & Projects at Harrison Parrott, one of Europe’s leading
music agencies, now a personal/professional development coach and Guildhall Coaching Associate) explore
how the lifestyle of an orchestral principal plays out in the daily interactions, trials and tribulations of this
most unpredictable of careers, and explain how their work led to the establishment of a non-musical
leadership skills professional training programme for orchestral principals, Leaders on (and off) Stage.

The training of orchestral musicians seldom includes preparation for the non-musical aspect of leading a
section of extremely talented individuals, nor how to excel as part of a high-performance team. How does a
Principal player advocate as a spokesperson for their section to the conductor with confidence? What are
some of the skills needed to diplomatically solve a disagreement?